“You’re going to have to pay”: Denny Hamlin blasts NASCAR’s “horrible decisions”

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin recently called out NASCAR for making "horrible decisions." On the latest episode of the Action Detrimental podcast on YouTube, Hamlin talked about how the NextGen cars are reaching hate levels of the Car of Tomorrow era.

Hamlin recalled the COT era and claimed that it was a major step back compared to the Gen 4 cars in which he began his career. He explained that the NextGen cars make passing harder because of their aerodynamics and design. Additionally, over time, the governing body has reduced the horsepower of the cars, which has hurt the racing. The JGR driver also claimed that the decision is made by higher-ups and not by the drivers.

Reflecting on the same, Denny Hamlin further explained:

"I believe that the Next Gen car is reaching hate levels similar to the COT with the wing. From fans, and I think they're starting to dislike this car as much as the drivers that have to drive it." [04:44]

"I hate to say it, but no business is immune to bad decisions. I think NASCAR has made some horrible decisions over a given amount of time — let’s leave that unspecified — and eventually it catches up. You can’t just say, “This is the direction I want to go.” Well, why? “Well, it’s just the direction I want to go.” You’re going to have to pay for your bad decisions at some point. And this could be said for lots of things that have happened in those offices," he concluded. [06:27]

With 731 points to his name, Denny Hamlin ranks third in the Cup Series points table. Notably, he has secured four wins, 12 top-ten finishes, 11 top-five finishes, and one pole position in 23 starts.

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"Toughest line to walk": Denny Hamlin opened up about his intense battle with his teammate before taking his fourth win

NASCAR Cup Series driver Denny Hamlin claimed the 58th win of his career at Dover Motor Speedway on July 20, 2025. However, during the final stage of the race, Hamlin had to fight an intense battle with his teammate, Chase Briscoe, to land the win.

During a post-race interview with Cup Scene on YouTube, Hamlin recalled the nail-biting finish and shared his views on the same [01:04 onwards] (via YouTube) :

"Yeah, that's the toughest, it's the toughest line to walk truthfully because if it is someone else, you don't mind running them up in the fuzz, right? If it's a teammate, you gotta sit down, you gotta see that guy tomorrow afternoon. So it's just a little different in that aspect."

"But you know, when we went back, right before we went back, Chris and I were walking back to our cars, and I said, "Just don't wipe me out." I was just, you know, I was afraid with him on, you know, we got old tires. I don't know what the grip level of the track is. I just didn't want JGR to clean itself out and then, you know, somebody else win it," Hamlin added.

After landing a P25 finish at Watkins Glen International, Denny Hamlin is set to compete in the Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway on August 16, 2025. USA, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, and HBO Max will broadcast the 400-lap race live at 7:30 pm.